Ragdoll Chronicles
by JAK Kinase
Summary: When she is five and the land of rice is not yet the land of sound, Sakura meets two S-class missing-nin. Then her house explodes and she wakes up with stitches and a penchant to horde money. AU, Sakura-centric. Rating may be subject to change.


Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue, yadda yadda.

* * *

When she was five years old, Sakura fell down a flight of stairs and broke her leg. At the time, she was still living in the Land of Rice so there were no medic-nin to fix her up, just civilian specialists.

In the normal run of things, one of the elder Harunos would have dried her tears, picked her up and walked off to the clinic where a nurse would set the break, put a cast on it and give her a lollipop for being such a brave little girl. Then she would return home to the farm and demand that her parents and older brothers sign her cast even as she hobbled about with tiny, adjustable-length crutches and weasel her way out of all the difficult chores for a month.

It would be adorable, really.

But alas, certain things were never meant to be.

* * *

Prologue: Shock

* * *

Sakura was crying. Quietly.

Her mother had told her to be brave and to be quiet and to run. And she had run. Even if it was far past her bedtime and the moon was out and the stars were shining. Even if it was dark and Minato had been kicked and had stopped barking or moving right after. Even if her leg hurt and there was blood on her dress and her mother had been scared. Even if she was just a civilian and according to the rules of engagement penned after the Second Great Shinobi War, civilians could not be targeted by shinobi.

Should not be targeted, it should have read.

_Hilt of a kunai sticking out of her father's eye. Spray of blood as he fell down-_

She had to run. Even when her leg gave out in the cornfield and she could only limp away as the family farm started to burn, it was all she could think. Run, run, run. She could move, so she could run. All it took was a little effort. A little more effort than usual, but still. The basic principles remained the same. One foot in front of the other.

All it took was a little effort.

A little effort to put her fingers into her ears so that she couldn't hear the screams or the mad, hissing laughter. A little effort to ignore the tears and snot running down her face. A little effort to not jump and scream at each garden snake or oddly cast shadow or firefly. A little effort to ignore the smell of ash and ozone and burning flesh. A little effort to keep on moving and avoiding cornstalks even when she cried and blubbered quietly. A little effort to put one foot in front of the other and move through the pain. A little effort to not think about the rest of the village as it was going up in smoke and flame. She had to keep moving. Forwards. Sideways. But never back.

Never back.

_Sakura! Sakura! Listen to me. You have to be brave._

Corn brushed at her sides, long stalks rising high enough to hide her from view. She wasn't short for her age yet, but she was still five. It wouldn't avert the gaze of a dedicated shinobi, but Mother was keeping them busy. Mother was a former Konoha nin and was very, _very_ strong. Everyone inthe village respected her. She was a chunnin which meant that no one could beat her. Even Father couldn't beat mother at arm wrestling and even if she was missing an eye, mother could somehow see _everything_. When strange creatures came out of the forest, mother was the one they called to defend the village. But this time, she couldn't protect all of them. She couldn't even protect her family.

So Sakura ran.

_Water. Go find water. Run through it. They'll lose your scent. Don't worry, they don't care about you._

Cornstalks whipped at her face but she didn't slow down. Couldn't afford to. She was maybe-probably-most-likely going to die if they caught her. She was only five after all. She couldn't beat them. She was too weak. A little voice in her head called her coward, told her to go back, told her to punch the damn bastards in the _face_ and then kick them in the dick like Ginjiro-niisan showed her and then stab them in the eye like they had stabbed father-

Sakura ignored the voice. That voice was not reasonable. That voice got her in trouble more than once and was mean and crude and suicidal.

And sad. Very, very sad.

Sakura was scared. That voice was never sad.

She tripped. Forced herself to get up, leaving a cornstalk bent at a rather unhealthy angle. Father would have been mad. She tried, stupidly, insanely, hysterically to put it back in place. It was important that she fix it. Important because father would yell at her and her brothers would tease her and she had to straighten it. If she straightened it, maybe this would all go away and it would be nothing more than a nightmare. But she was too little and it was too heavy and this was stupid stupid stupid. She got up again, leaving the cornstalk bent and dying. A mad giggle or sob threatened to escape before she clamped down on it. Now wasn't the time. Now wasn't...

Father couldn't care anymore. Mother had told her to run.

Sakura ran.

_You have to go find Konoha shinobi. They have leaves on their forehead protectors. Like mine. Sakura, this important, Sakura... no Sakura, NO. Stop crying. I can't help them anymore. You have to _listen_ to me Sakura._

_..._

_Sakura, please- I know it's scary._

Each step she took was grinding her broken bones together. She tried to distract herself from the growing pain in her leg. She suspected that if she stopped again she wouldn't be able to move anymore. So she distracted herself. Tried to think as she ran. She was good at that. At thinking. Even Toshihiro-niisan thought so. And Toshihiro-niisan was the smartest... She choked back another sob. Angrily brushed at her tears which only succeeded in irritating her already inflamed eyes. Ash and dust had gotten there. Blood and tears had gotten there.

Her older brothers were dead. Her father was dead.

Concentrate, Sakura. Concentrate.

Concentrate.

She didn't notice how her fingers dug into the palm of her hands, leaving them bloody.

There were five shinobi. One kunoichi (not counting mother). All of the shinobi had a musical note on their forehead protectors. Funny, moving tattoos on their bodies. The kunoichi seemed to be made of snakes. Mother knew him. (Mother had been scared) Then there was Mr. Ragdoll. Maybe a shinobi. Maybe a summon. Maybe something else. Mr. Ragdoll had been like a set of puppets. Piercing green eyes. Fought with brightly coloured attacks and black, hairy puppets against the snake kunoichi who replied in kind with her own attacks and snakes.

_I'm sorry Sakura... I'm so sorry... You have to be brave._

They were strong enough that their mere presence had been enough to send Ginjiro-niisan into shock. She had read about this. It was called killing intent. Only very strong people could project it. Ginjiro-niisan hadn't moved when a stray piece of wood had gone straight through his abdomen, crushing and spearing organs. (Liver, duodenum, pancreas, spine – _SHUT UP._) He hadn't flinched when a giant snake had bitten his leg off at the knee; hadn't made a sound as he bled to death, just another casualty in a stupid fight whose motives no one understood.

Sakura hoped he hadn't suffered.

Idle, useless, stupid hope. Of course he had-

Sakura bit her tongue to keep from screaming. She had to run. She had to run and stay quiet and find water and and and-

_Mother can't win._

The traitorous thought (mother hadn't said that, she _hadn't_ because than Sakura would be all alone and Mother wouldn't allow that) wormed through her head as she finally saw the edge of the cornfield and the beginning of the fence which marked the border between forest and farmland. The border between Fire Country and Rice Country. There was a stream, not too far from here. She had been there, playing tag with her brothers. She would always lose. Because she was too little. Because they were so much bigger and stronger and laughed at her and would rub her head when she pouted-

Sakura took a deep shuddering breath. Mother would survive. Of course she would. Mother had promised. Mother had given her a hug and told her to run. Mother had told her to be brave.

She was almost at the edge. Almost there. Her lungs were burning and she couldn't feel her broken leg anymore but she was nearly there. She would have to run further – maybe hundreds, thousands of times further – but as father had said, little goals, one at a time. He had meant to describe farming, but this would work too. It was good, all-around advice. She would make small goals. There was a Konoha outpost somewhere in the forest. She had to find it. Had to go get help. Had to go find the Hokage. Go-

And then she was there. At the edge. Grass and shrubs and darkness before her. Death and madness and destruction behind her. Family and friends and Minato and Mother and her entire _life_ behind her. Everything she knew, everything she was, behind her.

Sakura hesitated.

She wanted to stop to say good-bye, to say _something_. But all that came out was a hiss of pain. The voice in her head wanted to curse and scream and rant and say the words that mother and father would have washed her mouth with soap for saying. The voice in her head was scared and sobbing. Sakura clenched her teeth and moved forwards. She had to be brave. She had promised.

She wished she had never met Mr. Ragdoll.

Then the farm exploded and a gust of wind and heat sent her smashing into the treeline and she knew no more.

* * *

Author's Notes: Yes, I know it's confusing. Bear with me as I get the backstory set up. For those who are still wondering: this AU Sakura lived in the land of Rice. The 'snake kunoichi' is Orochimaru in his second body and this is the official Sound Invasion where they take over the country.


End file.
